Bill Howard ‘Faanuus’
June 2nd, 2006 Posted in USA, Urdu PoetryOne of the best things about managing Aligarians.com and IndianMuslims.in is that one gets to interact with really interesting people. Bill Howard ‘Faanuus’ saahab is one of them. I am really glad that he used one of the contact forms at the website.
He is a native-born American and lives in Arizona. He works in software consulting industry. One of his hobbies is to try to apply Urdu shers (couplets) to aspects of project management. In true tradition of Urdu poetry, he has adopted the taKhallus (nom-de-plume) Faanuus meaning glass-shade (for lighting). At his blog, nuur-e-Faanuus, he attempts to bring some culture (zauq) in the primarily technical world of project management. His initiative is unique and I have not seen anything similar.
Sample one of his posts,
When we refer to the people working on a project, we generally refer to the “project team.†We should never underestimate the importance of the “team.†If team members, or worst of all, the project manager, start acting on their own and do not communicate openly and frequently with the other team members, they run the risk of getting cut off from them. This can be disastrous for the project and for the independent individual. Sooner or later the loner soaring above the others will need support from them only to find out that he is truly on his own. Wasim Barelvi makes an observation that is quite apropos.
The penalty for flying in the air, friend,
Is that I was cut off from earthly relationships.
– Wasim Barelvi –मिली हवाओं में उड़ने की वो सज़ा यारो
कि मैं ज़मीन के रिशà¥à¤¤à¥‹à¤‚ से कट गया यारो
– वसीम बरेलवी –ملی Ûواؤں ميں اڑنےکی ÙˆÛ Ø³Ø²Ø§ ÙŠØ§Ø±ÙˆÚ©Û Ù…ÙŠÚº زمين Ú©Û’ رشتوں سے Ú©Ù¹ گيا یارو– وسيم بريلوی –Projects are not meant for solo pilots. Keep both feet planted firmly on the ground and stay connected to your fellow team members.
Faanuus saahab has taught himself Urdu and Hindi using “Teach Yourself Urdu” and “Teach Yourself Hindi” along with various dictionaries. Since he works for an Indian systems integration company, he has many friends with whom he can practice the languages and correct mistakes. Also, his previous knowledge of Arabic made learning Urdu a bit easier. He got interested in learning Urdu and studying ghazals a number of years ago when he heard a tape of Anup Jalota while riding in an Indian friend’s car. His favourite poet is Nida Fazli. He has not visited India/Pakistan but hopes to do so in future. Faanuus saahab’s blog can be accessed here.
The last couple of dayss have been quite lucky for me. First I discovered Nina Paley and now Bill Howard ‘Faanuus’.
